Garbarino's debt crisis ended in court-ordered liquidation in 2026

Garbarino was Argentina's largest electronics and home appliance retailer, operating more than 200 stores across the country with 4,500 employees. Founded by the Garbarino family, the chain dominated Argentine retail for decades. The crisis began in 2018 when Argentina's peso devaluation, high inflation, and rising interest rates crushed consumer purchasing power. By early 2020, Garbarino already owed substantial debts to banks and suppliers. The company was sold for a symbolic 1 peso to insurance group head Carlos Rosales.

COVID-19 devastated operations in 2020, with sales dropping up to 75% during peak months. A potential rescue sale to Facundo Prado collapsed in April 2021. In November 2021, Garbarino laid off 1,800 employees, closed most stores, suspended its e-commerce site, and filed for preventive bankruptcy. The company struggled for five years through the court process, unable to reach creditors or find an investor. The Pandora Papers revealed that founders Daniel and Omar Garbarino had set up an offshore structure in the Bahamas and BVI to hide $14 million.

On March 5, 2026, Commercial Court No. 7 declared Garbarino bankrupt and ordered the liquidation of all assets, including the Garbarino and Compumundo brands, two industrial plants in Tierra del Fuego that had been completely inactive, its financial arm Fiden, and its travel unit. At the time of the bankruptcy, only three stores remained open. The liquidation was ordered to cover the debts of creditors who had been waiting since 2021. The court cited the failure of the cramdown process and insufficient creditor support for the restructuring plan.

The court ordered liquidation in 2026 after failed rescue and restructuring efforts. Only three stores remained open at that point.

Garbarino had accumulated substantial debts to banks and suppliers by 2020 without a restructuring plan, leaving the company unable to survive the 2018 economic crisis and COVID-19.

The company's sale for a symbolic 1 peso to insurance executive Carlos Rosales in 2020 brought no fresh capital, and the only serious rescue offer fell through in April 2021, sealing its fate.

Founders Daniel and Omar Garbarino hid $14 million in offshore accounts in the Bahamas and BVI, revealed in the Pandora Papers, rather than using those assets to save the company during its crisis.

A decades-old brand and 200 stores cannot save a company that has lost its market. When the debt is already stacked and the economy shifts, the question is only how long the decline takes.